Rhiizz
by Omeganian
Summary: For years now, Garrett Carsen was obsessed with the power of the kwami. Today, he will have that power. The power of a kwami so dangerous, no one dared to use its since its creation.


Garrett was leaning against the wall, looking at his employees working.

"How long until we have an entrance? This is taking too long."

"Mr. Carsen, we are working with a wall in a structure which is at least four thousand years old, and, as far as I can tell, was never designed to have an opening. It all needs to be done properly," a petite, dark woman explained.

"And I am in a hurry, Kelly Serret," Garrett spoke in a calm voice. There was no need for him to threaten. The people on this mission knew him.

"Which is why I am not taking a week more to recheck everything," she never did understand why something that's been sealed for so many years couldn't wait a bit more, but decided against speaking it out. Any problems that may arise will just prove her point.

Garrett sighed quietly. Yes, he knew it was stupid, but he was getting impatient. So much effort and money invested.

And today, it was all paying off.

It started when he saw the news from Paris. Those three people; Ladybug, Chat Noir, Hawk Moth. All that power.

He swore that day that he'll have that power. Or even more.

For years, he searched for all the information he could find. A fortune of five hundred million, and a quarter of it was gone by now.

And every cent was worth it.

No, actually not. Twenty or so million were spent on false leads. But that couldn't be helped.

But he found what he wanted.

The power came from ancient creatures called kwami. Created long ago, spawned from the very fabric of life, imbued with power beyond mortal means.

But there was more.

Every kwami, when born, had only its animal traits for a true personality. A special technique, _The Technique_ , as the sources called it, was required to imbue them with human morals and traits. And studying The Technique, he realized one thing.

It could be used for more. All he needed was a kwami that never had a Chosen.

Of course, that was difficult.

But he found mentions of the Tombs. Places where kwami were sealed, too dangerous to ever be wielded by humans.

Fools.

Humans ruled Earth. No creature could be created by God that Man couldn't defeat. So long as one had The Technique.

"Mr. Carsen, we're about to breach the wall," Kelly informed him.

"Good job," he smiled at her.

Soon, that godlike power will be his.

Grinning, he brushed his fingers over the wall. Two creatures, a strange insect alongside a crab. And a writing.

He studied ancient scripts extensively. This was a Sumerian cuneiform of, most likely, the 24th Century BC.

 _Turn back, for beyond are sealed The Thread and the Mother, that which is beyond good and evil._

At least, that was the closest translation he could make. A few words were somewhat unclear, but it hardly mattered.

The power was his.

He always wanted an armor. A crab's shell would do.

The last charges went off. The wall crumbled.

Beyond it, lay a dark tunnel.

Picking up a lantern, he set on.

"No one is to follow," he said darkly. "Once I'm back, all of you will be rewarded. If you follow, you'll be shot."

No one had the slightest doubt he was serious.

Garrett entered the chamber. For thousands of years, it held the power that was now to be his. A power held in the box sitting upon a simple stone pedestal.

As he opened the box, there was a burst of light.

A tiny creature rose out of it.

Garrett felt his heart speed up. Here it was, a real, solid kwami. _His_ kwami.

And a beautiful one.

A transparent, glasslike being, its shell glittering in both his lantern's light and its own inner one. Smiling, it blinked at him with its single, glowing eye.

"Oh, hello," it spoke in a quiet, singing voice.

"Hello. Where is the other kwami? The crablike one?"

"What? Oh, there is no other kwami. You must have seen a picture of what I can become."

The creature paused.

"Have you come to free me?"

"In a way," Garrett answered as he sat upon the pedestal which used to hold the box. "You see," he explained. "I studied that Technique used to imprint morals upon the kwami, and I am quite certain I can use to take full control of you and your power. For us to become one."

"What?" the creature's voice was still surprisingly quiet for a being with its supposed power.

"You heard me," he said. "And I am warning you, that's the only kind of freedom you'll get from me. A fair warning."

"Never!" The creature darted in to a corner of the chamber. "I would rather wait ten thousand more years than have… that."

"Be my guest," was the answer. "There are other Tombs. I am sure some other kwami will be more cooperative," he took out a clock and set it on the floor.

"You have five minutes."

"Well, Kelly, sounds like it's going to be a good day," Kelly looked up. Mr. Aspen, the second in command of the expedition, was looking at her. "What are you going to do with your money?"

"I don't have it yet, so I'll hold my plans for now."

"Come on, don't tell me you mistrust our Master," Aspen smiled. "You've seen the texts, you've seen his generosity. He can be harsh, but he's fair. And don't tell me you want to end up like the esteemed Mr. Hawker."

"Did anyone mention my name?" They both turned toward the entrance, where another man stood.

"Just discussing how your behavior caused you to miss our Master's triumph. He's gone into the kwami chamber already."

Daniel shook his head. "So I wanted to be sure it's a proper type of creature. I _am_ the closest thing you have to a biology expert. Was that reason to lock me up for a day?"

"Oh, it _is_ the proper type of creature," Aspen laughed. "Some nice little bug. Or a crab. There seem to be two."

Daniel approached the wall. He squinted at the two carvings.

His eyes went wide. Grabbing a nearby lamp, he looked closer at the carvings. Actually, as Kelly noticed, at the crab carving.

"Crap!" As long as she knew him, she never knew him to curse. Certainly, she never expected the twenty or so extremely colorful words he spit out in half a minute.

"Well?" Garrett looked at the still huddling bug. It had less than twenty seconds left.

There was a barely audible sigh:

"Very well, Master. I accept."

"Good," he looked at the object which was left in the box. "Now, how do I use it? And don't try to cheat. Oh, and I need your name, kwami."

"Put the wristband on in a manner that will put it over a joint. And," it hesitated, "My name is Rhiizz."

"Very well," Garrett Carsen said as he followed the instruction, snapping the crystal clear piece of jewelry on his wrist.

"Rhiizz, Transform me!"

In a flash of light, the kwami was sucked into the wristband.

Garrett blinked. Was that a smirk he glimpsed upon its face as it flew through the air? Well, it didn't matter.

What did matter was the fact there was no transformation yet.

"Rhiizz?" he spoke with a hint of threat.

For a few seconds, there was no answer. Then, he felt something. A sharp sting under the wristband.

That was mentioned in no book.

"What the…" he looked at the band.

Where the sting was, it was no longer clear. A pattern of cracks spread out of that point. Within moments, the whole wristband was covered in them. A few more seconds, and it crumpled into pieces; nothing but a pile of dust on the floor.

He expected to see a shell emerging in its place. Or at least a superhero's costume. But there was none.

Instead, he felt something inside himself. Both physical and metaphorical.

 _Sounds like there was a reason the creature was sealed. But it doesn't matter._

He called upon The Technique. The tendrils spreading through his mind were obvious to one who studied. All he needed was to follow them to the source. There, he would find the place that held the animal's mind. There, he would subdue it. Bend it to his will.

And make that Rhiizz sorry for not warning him…

He found the source. Pushing a bit, he entered that place where the animal was.

It was like falling on one's face.

Right into a bottomless pit.

"No, NO!" Daniel was cursing no longer. "Why didn't he wait for me?" He dashed for the corridor, only to have a gun face him.

"No one is to disturb the Master," there was no hint of compromise in Aspen's voice. Nor empathy.

"Listen, you must listen to me. What does that writing say?"

 _"Turn back, for beyond are sealed The Thread and the Mother, that which is beyond good and evil,"_ Kelly answered. "At least, that's what it came down to when I worked on it alongside Mr. Carsen. There were words more fitting the meaning, but they made less sense."

"Let me guess, _Turn back, for beyond is sealed The Thread which is Mother, that which is beneath good and evil."_

Kelly blinked at him.

"How did you know?"

"No time to explain! We must stop him!" Daniel was begging now.

"Is this some kind of conspiracy?" Aspen's gun barrel didn't waver a hair. "Are you trying to stop us from receiving the Master's reward?"

"There is no reward, there is nothing, there is only void!" It sounded like he was going mad. "Didn't you see the pattern on that crab? Don't you remember what the Boss said? The Technique works by merging with the animal's mind!"

"You have ten second to explain properly," Aspen snapped at him. "Or you are dead."

"Mr. Aspen, please, stop," Kelly approached the two of them. "I can tell he's honest."

Before either man could speak, there was a strange noise. Like the shifting of the tomb's very walls. But there was something else. A hint of life.

"Too late," Daniel whispered. "Run!"

"No one is running," Aspen stepped back, so that he could both hold the other too under his gun, and watch the tunnel. "The Master's gifts are here, and…"

He wasn't prepared for what came next.

Garrett was kneeling on the floor. It was terrifying. He had never been more afraid.

Wracking pain? Paralysis? Demonic laughter in his mind, with that accursed Rhiizz mocking him for falling into a trap?

These would have been horrifying. He dreamed of similar things while he was studying The Technique, afraid that he might fumble something.

But this was worse.

Far worse.

Because when he entered the place, there was nothing there. He found no mind. All he found was a void. And now that void was consuming him.

Piece by piece, he felt his mind breaking apart, crumbling, being sucked into the void. Memories, emotions, skills. Everything that made up Garrett Carsen was vanishing.

And there was no glee on Rhiizz'es side. There was nothing. He tried to speak to it, to find something, some hint to its purpose or motivation.

But Rhiizz was silent. There was no sign of it existing anymore.

Suddenly, he felt something. Something on his belly. With the last of his mind, he forced himself to lift his shirt.

Ghastly yellowish veins were spreading across his front. The once toned belly now looked like it was bubbling.

He would have felt even more terrified at that.

Except now, even the overwhelming terror was crumbling, vanishing into the colorless void.

And within seconds, Garrett followed.

Right before the eyes of the three, the walls came alive. The stone became fleshlike.

Suddenly, tendrils burst out of one wall. The worker closest to the entrance of the tunnel didn't even have time to scream before they grabbed his body.

A second later, the tendrils withdrew.

The worker looked around him. There was no malice on his face. No fear. There was nothing. His eyes were utterly empty of all emotion. Unflinching, he stood in place.

Another suffered the same fate. And another.

"RUN!" Daniel shouted, grabbing Kelly's hand. She didn't argue.

Aspen still couldn't believe it. Was something wrong with The Technique? Was it some kind of trick? Was… was the kwami some animal stronger than his Master?

And he didn't believe it.

Not even the very moment the tendrils took his very being.

The two ran out with all the speed the could muster. There was nothing to debate. The only time they slowed down was to sound a General Evacuation alarm in the camp.

They didn't stick behind to see who would respond.

" _I'll defeat any creature God can create_ ," Daniel spat out as he started the car. It seemed his way of getting over his fear involved a lot of mockery. "What an idiot."

"What was Mr. Carsen's mistake?" Kelly asked as the car left the camp behind. Despite herself, she found the courage to look back at the hill containing the Tomb.

It was alive. Not writhing, as one would expect, but merely pulsating; a gentle, mindless breathing. Thankfully, it no longer seemed to spread.

"The mistake? Well, Darwin did create his theory after taking a few _proper_ looks at nature. And this is one of the creatures that, I believe, he studied rather extensively. Simply speaking, it's not the kind of creature one would believe God can create."

"So, will you tell me?" the girl leaned back into her seat.

"Since it is going to be a couple of hours at least before we reach a town," Daniel looked at the dashboard. At least Carsen was methodical about keeping the cars fueled and in good order. "And maybe a few minutes less before I can access the Internet and hopefully contact some proper kwami holder, I might as well."

Yes, some of the people did manage to get away. But it didn't matter. Nothing mattered.

Ten people walked out of the living hill. Twenty more approached them. Not one of them looked at another. Not one of them did much of anything.

A blob formed itself on the hillside right next to them. It burst, and a creature walked out.

No one acknowledged its existence. There was no bowing, no cheering, not a word, not a glance.

The creature, on the surface, resembled Carsen. But there were differences, too.

The toned musculature he spent so much time exercising for, was gone. No, this creature had a slim, androgynous appearance. And, of course, just like with everyone, its face expressed nothing.

Not even glee at its success.

And what a success it was.

An animal's mind can be subdued, easily enough.

When one is present.

An animal has fear for its existence, desire to find others for procreation, a drive to move to a new place…

Or does it?

Because how can you have these things, when your needs are taken care of without any need for you to move, when you don't even need to move a muscle for swallowing a bit of water with food in it, when conditions are ideal without you having to do a thing.

When other find you for procreation.

When you cannot move to a new place.

When you can do nothing to avoid a danger that might be coming your way.

When everything is done for you.

And you don't even have a brain to speak of.

When spreading isn't your desire.

It's merely you only nature.

And that's why, thousands of years ago, once the ancient Guardians realized what they have created alongside the others, they sealed these kwamis away.

But now, after all these thousands of years…

The Sacculina was loose.


End file.
